Bienvenidos a Miami
by Tea in the Sahara
Summary: A series of 3 mysterious religious deaths lead Mulder and Scully to Miami. some MSR
1. finally, a new case!

disclaimer: sigh...fine...I don't own The X-Files...there! sulks  
  
author's note: now, obviously this doesn't tie in with the series, so just bare with me, lol  
  
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Tuesday, March 11th, 2003

10:13am

Hoover Building, Washington D.C.  
  
The day was dead. Well, it had been dead for over 3 weeks now. Not a single x-file, Mulder thought to himself as he leaned back in his chair, and threw yet even more pencils over the ceiling of his desk. Usually, by now, they would've at least been assigned to work on a case in the VCU, or the least aid in an investigation. He continued to throw more pencils in his ceiling. Just then, the door quickly opened, startling Mulder and causing him to fall backwards in his chair.  
  
Scully walked in. "Mulder, I brought the-"A bit confused, she stopped when she noticed Mulder was nowhere to be seen. He slowly stood up and pulled his chair back up, then dusted his pants off. She let out a small laugh before speaking. "It's nice to see that you really working hard on finishing upat paperwork that's due". said Scully sarcastically. "Yeah, I was just taking a small break." replied Mulder, as he sat back down in his chair. When he did so, a couple of the pencils he had just thrown up on the ceiling fell on his head. He looked up at the ceiling as did Scully for a brief moment. "Typically when people take breaks, they do so once they've already been working, Mulder" said Scully with a bit of an annoyed look to her. "Scully, I was working. Of course I'm not finished though." replied Mulder. "Oh, I'd say it looks complete to me." Scully replied as she glanced up at the ceiling. His own glance met with the floor for a brief moment. "Here's the doughnuts and coffee you wanted." said Scully, placing the brown paper bag on his table along with a cup of coffee. She took out a glazed one and took a bite.

Just then the phone rang. Mulder answered the call. Scully looked at him interested to know what was going on. He hung up the phone. "I'll be right back." he assured her, as he left the office momentarily. He returned to the office 5 minutes later with an enthusiastic expression on his face.  
"Hey Scully, take a look at this." said Mulder as he placed the crème colored envelop in front of Scully, who was now sitting in his chair. She took out the papers from inside. "Ok, 3 murders, all within the past couple weeks, no leads...now explain to me what's so special about this case?" asked a still bored agent Scully. "I was JUST getting to that, Scully." said a still enthusiastic agent Mulder, while hitting the light switch and turning on the projector.

He showed her 3 slides. "Three victims, all with the same wounds and cause of death." he said pointing to the slides. "I see that much, but what makes this an x-file? This is just a series of murders from the same killer." said Scully. "Yes, true, but there's also another thing that they all had in common. They were all devout followers of Santeria." pointed out Mulder. "Ok, I still don't see how this is an x-file, because is obviously something that has to do with their religion. Human sacrifice is common in some cults." said Scully. "I realized that too, until I did a little more research." Mulder replied. "Mind sharing this 'research' with me?" she asked in response. "Sure, I'll explain it all on the way there." he said. "On the way where?" asked Scully, now puzzled. Mulder smiled at her sheepishly.

"Pack your bikini and sunscreen, Scully, we're going to Miami!"

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(This is clearly just the beginning. More to come soon. If you have any ideas for what you want to happen, share them with me. They might just end up in my story. =oD)


	2. destination Miami The house of Santeros

disclaimer: -sighs- grrr, don't remind me. I don't own the X-Files or any of it's characters. –sulks yet again-  
  
author's note: some of the things I mention about Santeria are false. I have nothing against the religion, so take no offense.  
  
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Tuesday, March 11th, 2003 10:56am Hoover Building, Washington D.C.  
  
"So, how soon are we leaving to investigate these crimes?" Scully asked. Mulder glanced at his watch, then spoke. "Actually, right after Skinner handed me the case, I immediately reserved two airline tickets. We really should get going, because out flight heads out a little before 1:00 this afternoon." Scully got angry. "Mulder! What were you thinking? With all of this paperwork left finished, we'll if we're out of here by 7:30." He rolled his eyes in response "Forget about the paperwork, Scully, this is more important. Besides, we can finish it all when we get back." he reassured her. "Alright, fine, how long will we be staying there?" she asked. "About a week, maybe less, it all depends. C'mon, we don't have much time, go home and pack and I'll pick you up a little before 12:30." he replied as he ushered Scully out of the office.  
  
1:28pm

American Airlines flight 180  
  
Mulder gazed out of the tiny window by his seat, while eating some sunflower seeds. Scully was reading "The Sheltering Sky". She was about halfway through the book when Mulder spoke. "Ay, Scully." She turned to face him. "Have you ever been to Miami?" he continued to look out the window. "No, I don't believe I have. What about you?" she asked. He shook his head "Neither have I."  
  
"Mulder, you never told me about your 'research' on this case." Scully reminded him. "Oh yeah, sorry, it's actually quite interesting really. In the religion of Santeria, there are many gods they worship. The main one being Chango/Saint Barbara, who is the most feared of all the gods. Now according to their belief, those who worship this god must perform every ritual and sacrifice correctly, or they will suffer the wrath of Chango." explained Mulder. "Like some kind of curse?" asked Scully. "I guess you could say that." he replied. "Dare I ask for your theory on this case?" she asked. "My theory? Well, I believe that the murders might be the result of a curse." he replied. "Mulder, maybe the preformed a ritual or sacrifice wrong, as you mentioned before, or committed some sin against the religion, which angered some other followers in their specific group? Which could explain the murders being within the same family. They murdered them in some kind of ritual probably. It all makes sense." argued Scully. He argued back "In any other case I'd agree with you, Scully, but there's been proof of people falling victim to the sorcery of Santeria, so we have to keep an open mind on this one." "Well, let's not jump to any conclusions until we examine the bodies and crime scenes." said Scully leaning back in her chair. Mulder nodded in agreement, and resumed eating his sunflower seeds while staring out the window.  
  
6:30pm

Miami, FL

Radisson Hotel  
  
"Well, everything seems to be going to plan so far." noted Mulder, as him and Scully stopped in front of the check in/out desk. There stood a short dark Hispanic woman with a heavy accent "How may I help you today sir?" she asked him. "Yes, I have room reservation under the name of Fox Mulder. It was a conjoined room suite." he said. "Ahh yes, I remember. Your room is on the 8th floor. Rooms 818 and 819" she said as she hand him their keys. "Thank you" they both said, as they headed for the elevator with their luggage.  
  
In the elevator, they began talking. "Well, looks like we'll have some free time after all." said Mulder. he continued "I figured we should go question the family sometime tomorrow morning." Scully nodded in agreement. "So, what do you want to do in the meantime?" asked Scully. This question caught Mulder off guard. "Why Scully, I'm surprised at you. I thought I was the one who was suppose to make all the innuendo remarks?" said Mulder as he let out a laugh. "Mulder, you know what I meant." said Scully, as she rolled her eyes at him. "Well, we could get some dinner I guess." he suggested. "Sounds like a plan" she replied, as the elevator door opened to the 8th floor. "Well, let's unpack, and then we'll find some place to go." said Mulder.  
  
After they finished unpacking, they left the hotel in the car that was rented out to them. Mulder began driving. "So where to Scully?" he asked. "Well, I really wouldn't know being that I've never been here before, so let's just drive around and see what we find." said Scully. They had been driving a while when they came across a restaurant called 'La Caretta'. "Hnn, this looks like a place to try out." said Mulder. Him and Scully both entered the restaurant intrigued by what they saw. The place was playing classical Cuban music and there were paintings, pictures, and decorations of Cuba. The hostess came up to. "Hola. dos? she asked. "Oh, I'm sorry we don't speak-"Scully was cut off by Mulder "Si si, dos." said Mulder in the biggest gringo accent. Scully raised an eyebrow at him as they were ushered to their seats. "Since when do YOU speak Spanish?" asked a surprised Scully. "Oh, I took 3 years of it back in highschool, but I don't really remember much. I only understand a tiny bit." he replied. Just then the waiter came up. "Buenas, yo soy Guillermo. Que quire tomar oy?" asked their waiter. "Sorry, Guillermo, we no intiendo espanol bien." said Mulder. "Oh, I so sorry. What you like to drink?" asked the waiter who clearly didn't speak English very well. Scully decided on water, and Mulder decided on some iced tea. They both looked at the menus confused. "Mulder, the entire menu is in Spanish." she said. "Thank you, captain obvious." said Mulder. The waiter returned. "Sir what do you recommend for us to eat." asked Mulder. The waiter gave them some options. Mulder decided on Bistec con limon y plantanos (skillet steak with lime and plantains), and Scully decided on arroz con pollo y plantanos (rice with chicken and plantains). When they got their food, they were surprised at how good it was. "And we have a winner." said Mulder with his mouth full. Scully smiled.  
  
After dinner, they headed back to the hotel. "Looks like I'll be having Cuban food more often." said Scully. "Ditto." said Mulder as he patted his stomach. "So, tell me, where is it that we have to go tomorrow to speak with these people?" asked Scully curiously. "We have to go to a section of Miami called Little Havana. That's where the family lives." replied Mulder. "What about the bodies? Has there been autopsies preformed on them yet?" she asked her partner. "Not to my knowledge. While I question the family, you can work on getting those autopsies." said Mulder. She agreed with him. As they approached their rooms, Mulder spoke. "Y'know Scully." she looked up at him before he continued. "I have the feeling that this is going to be one hell of an interesting case." She gave him a look of question. "G'night, Scully." he said. "G'night, Mulder." They both entered their separate rooms and got ready for bed.  
  
Wednesday, March 12, 2003

10:56 am  
  
Mulder awoke to the ringing of his cell phone. "Mulder..." he answered groggily. "Mulder, it's me, I just got here at the morgue where the bodies are being held." she said. "What time did you get up?" he asked. "Around 9:30. Anyway, Mulder, when are you going to go and question the members of the family?" she asked. "Oh, I'll go as soon as I'm finished showering and getting ready. Call me if you find anything, Scully." he said. "Of course, you know it." she answered before hanging up. Mulder got up to shower and get ready. Which didn't take him very long.  
  
11:49am.

Little Havana.  
  
A still tired Mulder, pulled up to the driveway of, what according to the directions, was the victim's family residence. The house was clearly added on to, had metal bars around the windows, and was painted a tacky shade of aqua. In fact, he noticed that a lot of the houses in Little Havana were tacky looking. He got out of the car and proceeded to walk up to the front door. An old woman peered out the window at him. He stepped to the door and knocked. The woman undid the many latches before opening the door. "buenas, senior." she said. "Hola, my name is special agent Fox Mulder, I'm with the FBI." he said as he held out his badge in front of her. The woman wasn't very tall, in fact she was less than 5ft tall. Her hair was cut in a bob, premed, and dyed what looked like it was suppose to be black but came out purple instead. "Oh, pardon senior, por favor, entran." she motioned with her hand from him to come in. As he stepped inside he noted the many big statues of the saints and candles everywhere. A strong aroma filled the air. "Yo, no abler espanol bien." he said to the old woman. "Oh, sorry senior. I try to eh speaky mas english." she said. She offered him some Cuban coffee. "You look eh mui tired, quiero café cubano?" she asked him. "Yes, thank you." he said in response. "My name is eh Joseffina Cortez De La Rosa Rodriguez." she said. "You are here about Marta, Yamil, and Luisa, no?" she asked. "Yes, he said. I understand that you are all strong believers in Santeria." he said. "Si." she said flatty and bit nervously. A man who had been sitting in front of the livingroom tv turned around and spoke. "So what you ask us for? We have eh noting to do with this." he said with an annoyed attitude.  
  
"Sir there's no need to take offense. I just want to know what happened, that's all." said Mulder. "Don't mind my huband, he no know what happen either. We no try make trouble with them." she told him. "Marta was my sister, Yamil nephew, and Luisa niece." They live eh next door before it kill them." she said. "What exactly do you believe killed them?" Mulder asked now more interested. Her husband stood up now. "No, Marta no deise nada a el! You no believe us anyway!" yelled the man. "Humberto, ya! cayate la boca!" she yelled back at her husband. she motioned for Mulder to follow her. She led him out to the back yard. it wasn't too big, but still a decent size. He noted all of the candle stands, and a circle for what look like fire. "My family very big. Many many people." she told him. My younger sister and her children, they grown up, they all live with her. They no believe in the religion. Our family saint is eh Barbara." she told him. "Chango." he muttered. She looked at him with a surprised look. "You know about eh Santeria?" she asked him. "Yes a little bit. It's a very interesting religion." he said. "Yes, my family we all live in this eh street, 3 house." she said. Just as she was beginning to explain more to Mulder, his cell phone sounded. he answered. "Mulder." "Mulder, I found something very interesting. You've gotta see this." said Scully


	3. monstruo de Chango

disclaimer: (gosh...don't these things annoy you? .) I don't own the X- Files or any of it's characters.  
  
author's note: sorry if my previous style of typing was hard on the eyes, I was typing really fast, lol. Anywho, another thing, not everything that I type in Spanish is spelled correctly.  
  
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Mulder left the family's residence and headed on over to the morgue. After speaking to Joseffina Cortez, he was beginning to understand a possible explanation for Marta, Yamil, and Luisa's deaths. From what she told him, her sister, niece, and nephew weren't into the religion very much. Could their deaths have anything to do with that? There was one thing he knew for certain though. Humberto Cortez didn't take too kindly to Mulder's questioning. He even assumed that Mulder didn't understand any Spanish when he yelled out loud to his wife "Don't tell him anything!" Mulder's Spanish may not be very good, but he understood that much. They were obviously trying to protect someone or something, but who or what?  
  
South Miami Hospital's morgue.  
  
1:15pm  
  
"So what is that you want to show me, Scully?" asked Mulder.  
  
"Well, while preformed autopsies on each of the bodies, I noticed that all of them had been drained of blood and any body fluid; completely dehydrated. They all have 3 wounds lined up on the biceps and triceps of each arm. Then I noticed something even stranger. On the back of each of their necks there is one huge puncture wound, and I examined the interior of the wounds they all had a blackish slimy substance." explained Scully.  
  
"Were you able to identify the substance at all? he asked in response.  
  
"Actually, no, I haven't been able to classify it's origin, but I did discover this." Scully turned off the lights. "It glows a deep blue in the dark." she said.  
  
"Hnn, that IS odd. Do you think it could be from some kind of animal?" asked Mulder.  
  
"That's a possibility, yes, or maybe some kind of poison they make and use in their rituals perhaps." Scully replied.  
  
"That could be, but it still doesn't account for the wounds on both of their arms." Mulder pointed out.  
  
"I think we should go back and continue questioning this family, so we can get some answers. This looks like some kind of cult ritual to me." said Scully.  
  
'Or maybe it's more than that.' Mulder thought to himself.  
  
After Scully had finished up everything she needed to with the autopsies, they were on their way. They weren't too far from the house when Mulder saw a Santeria store.  
  
"Wait, hold on a second, Scully, make a u-turn in that plaza we just passed." he said suddenly  
  
"Why?" she asked  
  
"There's a Santeria book store in there. I want to see if I can find anything. Maybe you're right about there being some kind of ritual for these deaths." said Mulder.  
  
When they pulled up to the store, they went inside. There were ALL kinds of books on Santeria. They looked in the English section. Scully picked up a book on Santeria Rituals, and Mulder picked one up about the legends of Santeria. They both didn't seem to be finding much until Mulder got a to a certain part of his book. It was labeled "Creatures of the saints".  
  
"Hey, Scully, take a look at this." he said.  
  
"What is it, Mulder?" she asked.  
  
"According to this, every family or group follows a certain saint, but still have to perform ceremonies in respect for the others. They must conduct every sacrifice and ritual correctly, or there are terrible consequences. Usually the punishments are in forms of curses sent from the specific saints themselves, but check THIS out." Mulder said.  
  
He pointed to a picture of a black reptilian-like creature. It had a long tail with 3 long sharp claws on each hand, and stood upright. The picture also depicted the creature biting it's victim in the back of the neck while holding it's arms in place, There was a long sharp tooth-like thing that came out and buried itself in the back of the neck. It glowed a dark blue.  
  
"Don't tell me that you think THIS thing is responsible." said Scully.  
  
"Well think about it. This book also says that it only comes out at night after midnight. And that it sucks the life out of its victims. It's known as the monstruo de Chango. Chango/St. Barbara is known as the god warrior and is considered evil, but still has to be respected. If members of the group or family do not respect worship him, Chango will send down this beast to kill them." explained Mulder.  
  
"There's no way that some mythological creature can just magically appear and suck the soul or life out of people, that's ludicrous, Mulder, especially when we're dealing with a family that involved in a cult. These are clearly murders by a member or members in the family." argued Scully.  
  
"Scully, with all that you've seen, you STILL aren't open to another explanation?" asked Mulder.  
  
"It's not that, Mulder, it's just that this looks more like cult murders in a ritual, which we have ran into before may I remind you, so we shouldn't just place the blame on some monster without questioning if one or more of the family members is responsible." said Scully.  
  
"Ok, fine, you're right. Now let's head over to the houses." said Mulder.  
  
Though Scully brought up a great point, and her explanation may very well be it, Mulder still wasn't satisfied. The bodies had the same wounds as the victims in the book that Mulder was reading in the Santeria bookstore. Even how the slimy substance grew a deep blue in the dark, just like Scully had shown him. It made sense to him. About 5 minutes later they pulled up in front of the Cortez residence. They knocked on the door of the tacky aqua house. Joseffina answered it. Her friendly brown eyes squinted with the sunlight.  
  
"Oh, hello, you come back to ask eh question about my sister and her children, Senior?" she asked.  
  
"Yes, I have, and this is my partner special agent Dana Scully. She's also investigating this case with me." Mulder said to her. Scully introduced herself and shook the woman's hand.  
  
"Come in eh side." said Joseffina, motioning them to come in.  
  
"Are any other members of your family present?" asked Scully.  
  
"Oh eh yes, they live in eh houses, they eh...eh...how you say? connectado." Joseffina tried explaining and motioning with her hands.  
  
"Do you mean, connected?" asked Mulder. She nodded in agreement.  
  
"Yes eh this house, eh pink, and eh yellow. Marta used to eh live in eh yellow house, and my other sister, Gisela live in eh pink house." Joseffina told them.  
  
What about your husband, Humberto was it?" Mulder asked.  
  
"Oh, he eh sleeping now. Si quiero, eh If you want, you speak to Gisela and her children." she offered.  
  
"Ok, thank you very much Mrs. Cortez, we'll do that." said Scully.  
  
"There is eh door that is eh connectado to her house, but eh, go to front door, cause she no know you." Joseffina said.  
  
"That's fine, thanks." said Mulder.  
  
"Oh eh y Senior?" she asked Mulder, who turned around.  
  
"Queiro café Cubano?" she asked him, remembering how he had enjoyed it before.  
  
"Sure, gracias, Joseffina." he said,  
  
"Y para la seniora?" gesturing if Scully wanted some as well.  
  
"Oh, coffee? No thank you, gracias." said Scully  
  
"See, you're learning more Spanish already." Mulder said to Scully playfully.  
  
After Mulder finished his coffee, him and Scully walked over to the pink house, which was right next door as Joseffina said it would be. Mulder knocked, and the door was soon answered.  
  
"Hello, how can I help you?" asked the young woman. She was taller than Joseffina, maybe 5'2. She had a bronze tan and long wavy hair. It was dyed a blondish brown color with highlights. She looked about 25 and was very skinny. Her olive eyes met Mulder's when she spoke. She had a slight Spanish accent.  
  
"Hello, how can I help you?" she asked checking Mulder out. Scully noticed this right away.  
  
Mulder was about to speak when he was cut off by Scully.  
  
"Yes, I'm special agent Dana Scully with the FBI, and this is my partner special agent Fox Mulder. We want to question you about the deaths of your aunt and cousins." Scully said as she flashed her badge, Mulder did the same.  
  
"Oh, I see." she said with a slight attitude in her voice toward Scully. She introduced herself and shook Mulder's hand. "My full name is Yanina Perez De la Rosa Rodriguez."  
  
"I noticed that you all have long last names, but that yours starts different." said Mulder.  
  
"Oh well, let me explain that." said Yanina as she motioned them to come inside. "It's actually three last names in one. The first name is my father's last name and then the other two are my mother's maiden name along with its family prefix. That's common in Santero families. The prefix shows what group or family of Santeros you're a part of. like my mother, brother, and I have the same first last name. Then, my tia Joseffina has Cortez in front along with her daughter. Tia Marta and her kids was Martinez." explained Yanina.  
  
"I see..." said Scully  
  
"So what can you tell me about your aunt Marta and your cousins; Luisa and Yamil? asked Mulder.  
  
"Well, they were our family obviously, but they weren't very into the religion. In my opinion they were a set back." said Yanina  
  
"Why would they be a set back?" asked Scully  
  
"Because, our rituals could never be truly complete, and that angers the saints." Yanina explained.  
  
"What can you tell me about monstruo de Chango?" asked Mulder curiously.  
  
Yanina avoided the question. "Well, I was on my way out. I don't really know much about what happened. Maybe you can speak to my brother and mother." she said while getting up and stepping out the door then winked at Mulder.  
  
Scully didn't trust her one bit. Just then a man that looked in his 30's came into the living room. He was about 5'9 and also had bronze skin, his hair was dark brown and short, with hazel eyes. He was a lot friendlier than Yanina. His accent was a bit thicker than his sister's.  
  
"Hello." he said in a confused tone.  
  
"Hi, I'm special agent Fox Mulder, and this is my parter special agent Dana Scully." said Mulder.  
  
"Oh, well, would you like my full name or-"he was immediately cut off by both Mulder and Scully simultaneously saying "No!"  
  
"Your first name will be just fine." said Scully.  
  
"My name is Juan Carlos. My mother is Gisela, and my sister is Yanina, who you just met."  
  
"What can you tell us about your aunt and cousins?" asked Mulder.  
  
"Well, they were nice people. I mean, I never had a problem with them or nothing." said Juan Carlos.  
  
"Your sister told us that they weren't very into your family's religion, and that they were a set back." said Scully.  
  
"That's true, but I wouldn't say they were a set back. Don't listen to Yanina, she is the only one who thought that, because she never got along with them. Especially Luisa. They were about the same age you know. Yamil was closer to my age though, him and I got along just fine." said Juan Carlos.  
  
"What can you tell me about monstruo de Chango?" Mulder asked again.  
  
"Oh, that? Honestly, I really don't know about all of that stuff. I mean, I practice Santeria and all, but I don't know like every little detail, I'd tell you to ask my mother, but she's out at Navarro, the local market. Maybe my tia Joseffina knows?" Juan Carlos said.  
  
"Alright, we'll do that. Thank you for your help, Juan Carlos." said Mulder.  
  
"No problem, if you need anything else, just come by anytime." said a very friendly Juan Carlos.  
  
"We'll do that, thanks." said Scully.  
  
Then they left. As they made their way back to the Cortez's residence, they spoke among themselves.  
  
"He doesn't seem to know much about what happened." said Mulder.  
  
"No, but Yanina DOES. She didn't obviously didn't take too kindly to our being there, or mine anyway, and didn't get along well with the Martinez's." said Scully.  
  
"Yeah, but that doesn't make her a suspect. Not yet anyway. She was probably just in hurry to go somewhere. It looked like we had interrupted her leaving." said Mulder.  
  
"Well, that's true, but I think she's hiding something." said Scully.  
  
They knocked on the Cortez's door, and another girl answered. She was about 5'4 and about average body type, but a little more curvy. She had shoulder length black hair, with dark brown eyes. She looked like she was in her 30's and spoke with a light Spanish accent.  
  
"You must be the FBI agents my parents told me about. She greeted both of them. Hi, my name is Victoria, I'm their daughter."  
  
The FBI agents both introduced themselves as well. Then, Sophia invited them in.  
  
"I know you want to know about my tia Marta and my cousins Luisa and Yamil. I was very close to them. I couldn't believe it when I heard what happened. It just hit me like a ton of bricks. I-"Victoria's eyes began to water. "They didn't deserve this. Who cares if they weren't devout Santeros? It didn't matter, they were loving and sincere. I don't know who would think of doing this to them." she said.  
  
"What can you tell me about monstruo de Chango?" asked Mulder.  
  
"Oh, el monstruo de Chango? I'm not to familiar with it, but my mother knows a great deal about that stuff. Our family mainly prays to Lazerous. He's our family's saint really. My mother probably knows though, but she went out with my tia Gisela to Navarro." said Victoria.  
  
"Alright, we'll ask her another time, but how would describe Yanina's relationship with your family?" asked Scully  
  
Victoria scowled at the mentioning of her. "Excuse my French, but Yanina is a bitch. She doesn't like anyone but herself. The only thing that's good about her is that she's one of the most devout Santeros in our family."  
  
"Do you think she could possibly be involved with their deaths?" asked Scully.  
  
"Well, she may be a bitch, but I don't think she'd go as far as to killing someone, especially her family." said Victoria.  
  
"Well, thank you for your time, Victoria, we'll stop by early tomorrow." said Mulder.  
  
Victoria nodded.  
  
I was now after 5:00. How time did fly in their line of work. They decided they'd continue their investigation the following day, when everyone was home. That way they could gather them all in one place.  
  
"Mulder, I think I'm going to take another look at those bodies, I want to see if I can find any fingerprints or anything else that might give us some more clues as to who or what caused this." said Scully.  
  
"Alright, but let's go back to the hotel and get maybe get a bite to eat. Then we'll leave again. and while you're working on the bodies, I'll see if I can go into the Martinez's house and get a look at that crime scene finally." suggested Mulder.  
  
"Good idea." said Scully.  
  
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(well, that's it for chapter 3. In the meantime I'm gonna go watch the X- Files, because it's on right now, lol. I'll post more soon. R and R!) 


	4. the crime scene

disclaimer: I don't own The X-Files...blah blah blah...  
  
authors note: this chapter will have more action, so no worries. =o)  
  
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Radisson Hotel, Miami 7:15 pm.  
  
"MmMm...I can't get enough of that Cuban food." said Mulder, patting his stomach. Scully only smiled. They were on their way back to the hotel from eating out at the Cuban place.  
  
"Mulder, when do you want to head out to the crime scene?" asked Scully.  
  
"In a little while. It's not a good idea to investigate our work on a full stomach, especially you, Scully; you're the one performing the autopsies." said Mulder.  
  
"Hmm, good point, even though I'm very used the whole routine already. Anyway, why didn't we investigate the crime scene earlier, when we first arrived? asked Scully.  
  
"Well, before we left for Miami, I informed the local police there, and I guess they're all superstitious or something, because they won't allow anyone else in to check out the crime scene. That's why we weren't given the case until recently. They're holding it off limits." explained Mulder.  
  
"That's ridiculous, there were 3 murders committed. How could they have the audacity to do such a thing? All because of superstition." Scully said annoyed.  
  
"Yeah, well, this all happened over a week ago. However, when 5 officers went in to investigate they all grew ill within the same day, so ill that they were rushed to the hospital and were in critical condition. Mind you, Scully, these were healthy men, otherwise they wouldn't have been on the scene to begin with. Since then they all got a bit paranoid, and left the crime scene off limits." said Mulder  
  
"Well, maybe there was something toxic inside that cause the sort of reaction?" said Scully.  
  
"No, they didn't find any evidence of that when they did blood, and urine tests." said Mulder.  
  
"Well, then how are we suppose to investigate the crime scene?" asked Scully.  
  
"Well, it's guarded all throughout the day. The only time that anyone refuses to go anywhere near that house is at night. The crimes took place at night, so they think the killer will come out to kill anyone who goes near the house." said Mulder.  
  
"Oh, I see, so that's why you told me earlier that you were going at night. But wait a minute Mulder, what if the killer does go back there at night? said Scully.  
  
Mulder gave her a knowing smirk.  
  
"Well, then I'll go with you then, that way it's not just you." said Scully.  
  
"No, no. Go back to the lab and see if you find anything in the results. That might help narrow things down more." said Mulder.  
  
"But Mulder I-"she was cut off by Mulder.  
  
"Scully, I'll be fine, trust me on this." said Mulder.  
  
They had just pulled up into the Radisson Hotel parking lot. When Mulder parked the car, Scully let out a sigh. She didn't want to believe the superstition, but she still was worried about Mulder nonetheless. Even though they've been through things more threatening before, it just didn't feel right. They entered the hotel and made their way to the elevator. Mulder pressed the 8 button with his thumb before breaking the silence.  
  
"Scully, what's wrong?" Mulder asked, a little concerned at how quiet she was.  
  
"Oh, nothing, sorry. I'm just a little tired, that's all." she replied.  
  
"Maybe you should just get some rest then? It's been a LONG day." Mulder suggested.  
  
"No, I'm fine, really." said Scully.  
  
"No, Scully, I'm serious, get some rest. I shouldn't be there too long anyway. You can pick up where you left off tomorrow morning." said Mulder, as they approached their rooms.  
  
Scully sighed. "Fine, I'll stay. I wouldn't mind resting anyway."  
  
Mulder rubbed Scully's back for a brief moment before entering his room.  
  
"Don't worry, Scully...I'll be back." Mulder gave her a goofy smile, and she returned the gesture.  
  
Around 8:30, Mulder headed out to the crime scene. He couldn't stop thinking about el monstruo de Chango. He wished he could've been able to speak with Joseffina Cortez, or maybe her sister Gisela Perez. They probably knew what it was. 'I'll definitely ask them tomorrow.' he thought. about 10 minutes or so later, he arrived at the crime scene. It was the last house of the 3 Joseffina Cortez had mentioned to him. With his luck the door would be locked.  
  
"Shit..." he muttered.  
  
It was locked. He looked to see if maybe the family had a spare key around, maybe under a pot or rug. He looked under the rug, and sure enough, he found one.  
  
"Bingo." he said as he turned the key, and opened the door.  
  
He took out his flashlight. The house look pretty similar to the other two, only minus all of the candles and statues of the saints. Then, he remember other members of the family saying that they weren't very religious, though he did find some Santeria items, naturally. He looked a tall stand filled with many framed pictures, all of their family members. He saw one that caught his eye. It was a picture of Yanina with her cousin, Luisa. Luisa was tanned as well, she was also skinny, she had dark brown eyes, and long curly hair. They seemed pretty happy in the picture. Then, Mulder found another picture of all 3 sisters. Marta, Gisela, and Joseffina, each holding a gold candle.  
  
Mulder continued to look around the house. He entered each of their rooms. First Yamil's, then Marta's, then Luisa's. They had all been attacked in their sleep, because there were stains on all of the beds. He remembered the pictures he had received of the vicitims being found face down.  
  
He made his way out of the hallway of rooms, and into the living room. That's when he saw something avery strange. There were tracks leading to the sliding glass door to their backyard. However, what made this odd, is that these tracks were definitely not human. They were about a foot long, narrow, pointed at the heel, and had three pointed toes. This was getting way to weird he kept thinking to himself.  
  
He went outside into the backyard to see if he found anything. The yard was very long, and most likely connected with the other 2 houses. There were some palm trees and some shrubs. He noticed something hidden behind a few fallen palm tree branches. I was a circular stone about 3 ft wide. On it were symbols that were unrecognizable to him. He touched the circle and felt a slimy residue on the outer part of the circle.  
  
Mulder decided to go back inside the house to see if he could find the substance in the bedrooms. When he got inside, he noticed something disturbing. The foot prints were gone. He immediately rushed inside of the bedrooms. All of the blood stains were gone and the beds were made. He could feel the rush of adrenaline build up in his diaphragm. He shut off his flashlight and slowly snuck out of the rooms, and was going to head out the front door, when he heard a crash inside of the kitchen, followed by movement.  
  
He froze, his heart was racing, and he didn't even know why. Mulder had been in worse situations before, but this was different. He felt the sheer presence of evil surrounding him. He made a run for it out of the sliding glass door, and ran to the right, where the yard was connected to all of the other ones. He felt something chasing him, he could hear it behind him. Without thinking, he ran behind a hibiscus shrub and a big palm tree. He heard his pursuer stop. Then run back the other way.  
  
A few minutes later, Mulder crept out from the shrub. He slowly stood up and wiped the sweat from his head before letting out a long sigh of relief. He turned around to start walking towards the nearest gate, when suddenly his mouth was covered shut, and he was being restrained and pulled away further down the yard. He tried desperately to free himself, but his efforts were useless.  
  
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author's note: don't you just hate cliff hangers? =oP I'll be updating soon! =oD 


	5. the ritual

Disclaimer: I don't own The X-Files or any of its characters...and if I did, what makes you think I'd be writing fanfics? With all of that money? Hell NO! I'd be out clubbin' in South Beach! WHOOHOO!  
  
Author's note: Oh yeah, to answer one of my reviewer's questions, yes, I am Hispanic...half Cuban in fact. I taught myself Spanish though, from living down here in Miami, but like I said, my grammar is bad. Anywho, enjoy! =oD  
  
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Mulder could feel his knees dragging against the moist ground. The yard was dark enough that he couldn't see who or what had gotten him. He felt something touch his chest, and then suddenly he felt weak. He feared the worst. He wished whatever had captured him would just come to halt already. A few minutes later, the dragging came to a stop. He felt himself being dropped to the ground. Mulder opened his eyes again.  
  
Candles, mounted on top of tall staff-like wooden posts. Twelve of them, all lit around him. Stones, statues, and an alter were around him as well. Then, he realized, he was the middle of a circle.  
  
"Por que usted estas aqui?" a male voice demanded.  
  
"What do you mean WHY am I here! What's going on?" asked a both furious and distraught Mulder.  
  
"Calmate senior" a familiar female voice said, trying to coax him and placing a hand on his shoulder.  
  
"Joseffina?" he asked confuse.  
  
She nodded. "Si si, no worry." she said.  
  
"I don't understand...why did you capture me like that?" asked Mulder.  
  
"Let me explain." said Juan Carlos. "We heard noises while performing one of our nightly ceremonies. Running."  
  
"We were, escared that you was eh bad person." said Gisela, trying to find the right words in English.  
  
"They thought you were the person responsible for the deaths." said Victoria walking outside, followed by Yanina. They were directly behind the Cortez house.  
  
"Actually I was just trying to investigate the crime scene. The Martinez house." said Mulder.  
  
Both Gisela and Joseffina's husbands muttered at the same time. "Que Stupido..."  
  
"Humberto y Sergio! Cayate la boca!" said Joseffina, while Gisela glared at them.  
  
"Do you know anything about, el monstruo de Chango?" asked Mulder, even more curious after the evidence he had found back in the house.  
  
They all grew quiet for a brief moment.  
  
"El monstruo de Chango...mui intelligente..." said Joseffina.  
  
"Si...el monstruo de Chango...is eh very eh...evil." said Gisela.  
  
"Do you think that this beast is responsible?" asked Mulder.  
  
They again grew quiet.  
  
"Senior, usted se fue aentro de la casa. Ajora, se va a enfermar." said Sergio.  
  
"Si si, you went in eh house, you can get eh very sick if we no help you." said Joseffina.  
  
Victoria and Yanina stood by the sliding glass door, watching them.  
  
Mulder nodded with a knowing look. "Do what you must."  
  
Joseffina and Gisela performed a ritual to ward off the curse before it could take effect. They instructed him to remove his shirt and to remain in the middle of the circle. Their husbands aided them by handing them their, spices, oils, and blessed chicken blood. They began painting circles and patterns on his chest, back, and 3 on his face. They began chanting in Spanish what almost seemed like a song. He began to relax, and closed his eyes. A feeling of nirvana and ecstasy over came him. Not too intense, but still enough to put him a state of meditation. The ritual went on for over 30 minutes. Then the men filled up what looked like a tub, full of water. The women threw in some spices into the water and mixed it around before chanting over it.  
  
"This is our eh holy water. You need to take off clothes and esit inside for maybe eh 30 minute." said Gisela.  
  
Mulder looked around, a little embarrassed about having to undress. They all let out some small laughter before turning around. Yanina was definitely going to enjoying watching this show from a distance.  
  
She smirked "Oh yeah...come to mama..." she said in a low voice, but loud enough for her cousin Victoria to hear her.  
  
"Yanina, would you listen to yourself? The man is like 10 years older than you, if not more!" said Victoria, while pulling her by the arm back inside the house.  
  
"And look at you! You're only making me miss out, so that only YOU can catch all the action." said Yanina with an attitude.  
  
"Oh spare me, Yanina. Besides, at least I'm in my 30's already." Victoria said confidently.  
  
"Whatever!" Yanina whined while crossing her arms.  
  
She sighed "Just SO Typical..." said Victoria, rolling her eyes.  
  
"What? What's SO typical?" asked Yanina getting annoyed as well.  
  
"You, this, the way your mind is ALWAYS in the gutter." said Victoria still annoyed.  
  
"Whatever..." said Yanina rolling her eyes, but still watching the ritual.  
  
They resumed the silence that they had maintained before their mini argument. It seemed that was the only way to keep them from fighting.  
  
The water was a bit cold, but since the evening air was still humid, it didn't bother him much. While the rest of the family when inside of the Cortez house, Mulder kept on thinking about what had taken place in the Martinez house that night. They knew the house was cursed by something, but what? Could his theory be right? I mean after all, they never DID answer his question about it. He figured that they'd be afraid to tell him. Maybe they thought he'd suspect all of them, but then why would they perform a ritual to bless and rid him of any curse? This case was still blurry to him. He was beginning to understand how the family functioned though. It was the elder sisters who had the upper hand in their family, but he didn't suspect the 2 remaining sisters. He could sense their sincerity from the very start, especially Joseffina. Though he'd only known her for a day, he sensed an indescribable warmth from her.  
  
Mean while, back inside of the Cortez house, the family was discussing the dramatic events that unfolded that night.  
  
"El Monstruo de Chango...como el savi eso?!" asked Humberto. He was shocked that Mulder even knew about that legend, especially being that Mulder works for the FBI.  
  
"El me preunto si yo savi algo de eso." said Juan Carlos, saying that Mulder had asked him earlier that day about it.  
  
Victoria and Yanina also informed them that they were asked about it too.  
  
"Pero, el no es un Santero." said Sergio, pointing out that Mulder isn't a Santero.  
  
They all began arguing and speaking loudly at the same time till Joseffina made them quiet.  
  
"Silencio!" she said. "El es differente de los otro policia. El Senior, es mui spiritale." Joseffina began to explain to them how she could sense that he is indeed very deep and spiritual, and how open he is.  
  
Joseffina told her family that they should not fear him, but trust him. After about 30 minutes of talking amongst themselves, the family said their goodbyes to each other and went off to bed. Victoria was leaning against the dining room table and Yanina was by her.  
  
"So, our mothers sense much spiritual depth from this guy?" questioned Yanina.  
  
"Yeah, pretty odd for someone who works for the government." Victoria said letting out a brief laugh.  
  
"Well, of course YOU wouldn't feel anything like that from him or anybody." said Yanina with an attitude.  
  
"And just what exactly are you implying, Yanina? It's not like YOU'd feel anything!" said Victoria glaring at her.  
  
"I DO feel those kinds of things, and I felt it in him."  
  
"Mama, the only thing YOU felt were hormones." replied Victoria turning away from her annoyed.  
  
"Maybe, but I knew that he definitely wasn't the typical cop." said Yanina.  
  
"Well, yes, that's because he isn't a cop. He's an FBI agent, remember?" said Victoria. "Here, give him these. I'm heading back to my house" Victoria said still annoyed while throwing a couple towels at her.  
  
Yanina slowly opened the sliding glass door.  
  
"Umm, agent Mulder was it?" she asked him.  
  
"Yeah, that's me." acknowledging her presence.  
  
"Here, I thought these might come in handy." said Yanina while handing him the towels.  
  
"Thanks, I'll be needing these." he said looking at her as she began to make her way back inside the house.  
  
"Oh and agent Mulder." she turned around. "Sorry about earlier today, I was in a rush to leave." Yanina said.  
  
"You're forgiven, just be a bit more cooperative the next time my partner and I stop by to question you and your family." Said Mulder.  
  
Yanina nodded. "Sure, no problem." she said as she headed back into her aunt and uncles house, and then made her way through the connecting door to her house.  
  
Once Mulder knew he was alone, he stood up and stepped out of the tin tub. He dried himself off, and began to dress himself. Once he had finished he went back inside the house. Joseffina was in the kitchen preparing food for the next day.  
  
"Oh, so I see you finish." she said.  
  
"Yeah, that was about 30 minutes of soaking right?" asked Mulder.  
  
"Si si, I so sorry that I no get you earlier. I was eh speaking with eh mi familia." Joseffina apologized.  
  
"That's alright. I was enjoying feeling like I was being prepared to be cooked." he joking.  
  
"Oh, heh heh." she laughed.  
  
"Well, if you're finished, then I'll be going back to the hotel that I'm staying at." Mulder said as he approached the front door.  
  
"Si, asta manana, senior, buenas noche." she said waving to him.  
  
"Yes, good night to you too, see you tomorrow." Mulder replied while stepping out the door.  
  
He headed back to his car. It was parked in front of the Martinez house. He got a slight chill before getting inside his car and starting up the engine. Mulder knew he had really lucked out tonight. He was very grateful that the family was outside, otherwise, there's no telling what could've happened to him. He began to rethink the events that had taken place during the evening. He remembered that the family knew about the curse and it's effects, and also remembered their reaction to his question concerning el monstruo de Chango. Though he understood some Spanish, he couldn't piece up all of what they were saying together. He definitely knew that they were surprised about his knowledge of the legend. However, they still didn't answer his question as to if whether they thought the beast was responsible or not. Maybe they were frightened? He overheard what sounded like arguing when they all went back inside of the Cortez house.  
  
Mulder was still disturbed by what had happened at the crime scene. The 3 ft stone with the engraved symbols on it, the slimy residue, the disappearing evidence, but most of all...the horrific feel that overcame him while inside. It was one of the most frightening feelings he had ever had in his life. He felt sheer evil at work in that house. Curse or no curse, one thing was certain. He definitely was not alone in there.  
  
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(Took a bit longer to write this chapter. I'll write more soon! =oD) 


	6. a better look inside

Disclaimer: Blah Blah...I don't own Mulder and Scully or The X-Files...Hnn...I wonder how much they cost anyway? o.O Lol...  
  
author's note: umm...hi again? lol...I don't really have much to say this time, but the usual applies...my Spanish grammar and spelling SUCKS XoD ...Now, on with the story! =oD  
  
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Radisson Hotel, Miami  
  
10:45pm  
  
Scully was on her bed in her pajamas watching some TV. The hotel didn't get many good channels. She had flipped it to some Spanish news channel. She didn't understand what they were saying, but still gazed at the television anyway, extremely bored. Then she glanced at the clock on her nightstand. She read the time and began to worry. 'What on earth is taking Mulder so long?' she thought to herself. She hadn't called his phone, because she knew that he wasn't suppose to be going to the crime scene, especially at this hour, just in case someone heard his phone ring. She let out a long sigh. Why is it that SHE's the one who gets stuck doing the tedious work? Then again, Mulder usually took care of the more dangerous things on his own. He did his best to keep her safe at all costs. This was one of his methods. However, Scully always felt this to be more of a dominance kind of thing...something to boost his ego.  
  
'Why does HE always have to be the one to conduct everything?' She was well used to it by now, but it made her feel less important at times. It seemed to her like he always expected her to go along with everything he has planned...no matter what it is. She hadn't been on a date in YEARS. Ever since she was assigned to the x-files she became numb to that emotion. It became foreign to her. 'Does he expect me to just follow him around FOREVER?' she thought to herself. He did, after all, just go and make plans at the spur of the moment...like with this case. Though they were bored to tears for not having anything assigned to them, he always did this when something came up. Why couldn't he for once just treat her like a woman? These kinds of things crossed her mind every now and then when she was alone. Just then she her the sound of a door being unlock. Mulder had come back. Since they had gotten a double room suite, Scully went in his room through the connecting door excitedly.  
  
"Did you find anything?" Scully asked a now enthusiastic Scully.  
  
He let out a long sigh before speaking. "Where do I even start?"  
  
"I figured something must've happened since you had been gone so long." said Scully  
  
"Well..." Mulder explained everything that had happened at the crime scene.  
  
Scully was a bit puzzled, but she already had her theories. Clearly someone was trying to cover up their tracks. The killer obviously was taking advantage of the family's religious beliefs and superstitions to scare them and other away. The 5 men that had first investigated the crime scene fell ill due to some kind of toxin or contagion she thought. Scully pointed this out to him.  
  
"Mulder, you probably should get checked out, remember the other men investigating fell ill. The killer probably planted some kind of toxin in the house to prevent other people from investigating." said Scully.  
  
"Yes, Scully, the men DID get sick, but immediately after leaving the crime scene. I had a ritual preformed on me to ward off any curse that might be on me. The other men didn't. I've been away from the crime scene for over 2 hours now, and I have yet to feel a thing." said Mulder.  
  
"Maybe you didn't encounter the toxin, so it's not affecting you." said Scully.  
  
"That's because there IS no toxin, but there IS a curse. One of the men in the family even told me that if I wasn't cleansed immediately that I too would fall victim to the curse" explained Mulder.  
  
"Well, how did they know about this curse if they had nothing to do with these murders?" asked a now skeptical Scully.  
  
"That's because they've seen this kind of thing before. When I heard them talking amongst themselves I tired piecing together what they were saying, and I heard them say that something was attacking their family...a demon." said Mulder.  
  
"So they believe that their family is being cursed by some demon?" asked Scully raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Well, from what I heard, yes." said Mulder.  
  
"Mulder, get real. You honestly believe this?" she asked half laughing at the mere thought.  
  
"I don't see why I shouldn't, and from what I experienced tonight, it seems to be fact." said Mulder.  
  
"Can't you see? The killer is just trying to cover their tracks, and is using this belief to their advantage." argued Scully.  
  
"Scully, cleaning up evidence is one thing, but to do it in mere seconds is another." he argued back.  
  
"You said that you stepped out to the backyard for about 5 minutes, so-" she was cut off by Mulder.  
  
"Yeah, keyword there, Scully. FIVE minutes...if that! There's NO way possible that someone could rearrange everything that was knocked down, make all of the beds, and then clean up ALL of that blood. I mean, there were huge stains in the carpets and in the linens of the beds, and they just vanished. Now explain to me how someone could do all that in under 5 minutes?" said Mulder demanding an explanation.  
  
"Ok, fine Mulder, suppose it DID just vanish...all of that didn't happen on it's own. Someone was in there controlling that...the killer most likely." said Scully  
  
"Of course they were, but the question here isn't HOW they did it, it's WHO or WHAT did this." said Mulder sitting down at the edge of his bed.  
  
"Wait...what do you mean WHAT did this? Don't tell me that you believe something inhuman is responsible...that, that THING you showed me in that book in the Santeria shop is the killer. What was it called again...el...el- " she was interrupted by Mulder.  
  
"El monstruo de Chango." said Mulder.  
  
"Mulder, that's a mythological creature, it's not real. Even if it were, it couldn't be capable of spells, curses, or magic. That's ludicrous." said Scully.  
  
"Scully, I saw its foot prints. Those footprints couldn't have been human. They looked reptilian-like and were over a foot long, so right now that seems like a good explanation." he argued.  
  
"Well, we won't know more until we keep investigating, so let's not jump to conclusions." said Scully in response.  
  
"Right, we'll continue tomorrow." replied Mulder  
  
He leaned forward slightly and clutched his knees to support the weight, forgetting how he had been dragged on them earlier. He quickly remembered.  
  
"Oww..." Mulder hissed in pain and let go of his knees.  
  
"Mulder, are you alright?" ask Scully a bit worried.  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine, it's just that earlier, when the family pulled me to the other end of the yard, my knees were dragging the whole way." said Mulder.  
  
"Have you looked at them to see if they had been cut and were bleeding?" asked Scully.  
  
"Well, I did have to undress and soak in some holy water of sorts, but I had completely forgot about my knees at that point. The ritual did something to my nerves as a part of the cleansing process, so I completely forgot about them." said Mulder.  
  
She kneeled down in front of him, trying to roll up his pants above his knees, but to no avail.  
  
"Mulder, take off your pants." said Scully.  
  
"Oh Scully, do you know how long I've waited for this?" said Mulder throwing her a joking smile.  
  
"Riiight, I'll go get my first aid kit." said Scully.  
  
When she returned, he had removed his pants, and he was calling out to her.  
  
"That's right, come to papa, baby..." he said again jokingly.  
  
She let out a brief laugh in response to his comment, and then cleaned up his knees.  
  
"Well, I don't see much bleeding...just scrapes...so your knees are fine." said Scully.  
  
"Sure wish I could say the same for my pants." said Mulder holding up the pants he had been wearing and inspecting them.  
  
"No, but you can always buy another pair. Those were probably old anyway." said Scully raising herself to her feet once more.  
  
"It's a good thing that I decided to bring more pants on this trip, usually I only bring a few pairs." said Mulder.  
  
"That's all?" asked Scully, surprised.  
  
"Well, there really isn't any need for more. Unlike YOU, who packs her entire apartment." said Mulder teasing her.  
  
"I do not, and all of the things I bring are necessary." she replied.  
  
"Gee, I didn't know that your entire Reader's Digest collection was a necessity?" he said sarcastically.  
  
"You're exaggerating. I only brought a few of them. And what about those magazines and tapes that 'aren't yours'? asked Scully now teasing him.  
  
"No, this time I left those at home. In Miami you don't need any of that...not with all of the girls walking down the nude beaches." said Mulder with a sheepish grin.  
  
She laughed at the remark. "Good night, Mulder."  
  
"G'night, Scully." he said with a smile.  
  
Scully returned to her room through the connecting door once more. She laid down in her bed, and turned off the lamp on the nightstand next to the bed. She closed her eyes, but sleep would not to come to her. This case was definitely going to be a confusing one. That family seemed very suspicious to her...like they were hiding something. Could it be that one or more of the family members was responsible for these murders? She knew that it was important to keep in mind that the family was very superstitious and devout to their religion, so they could've just felt uncomfortable around them. That's happened to them before with many other cases, but she wouldn't take any chances. In her eyes, everyone was a suspect...except for Mulder. She began to think of him. Though he could be a pest at times, there's no other person she'd rather work with. Many people judge Mulder and only see his flaws, but they really don't give him enough credit. The man is extremely intelligent and is THE perfect asset...she thought so anyway. She started to regret her thoughts a little while back before Mulder had come back from the crime scene. Finally she grew weary, and drifted off into slumber.  
  
Thursday, March 13, 2003  
  
11:06am  
  
Still sleeping, Mulder rolled over on his bed now facing the window. The sunlight had crept between the closed vertical blinds and project stripes on the walls and on his bed, shining on his face. This woke him. He stretched for a minute or so before sitting up, and then turned his head towards the nightstand next to his bed. The clock read 11:06am. It took him a few moments to realize how late he had woken up. Quickly, he got up and rushed into Scully's room. She was still sleeping, which was very unusual, being that she always gets up early.  
  
"Scully..." Mulder shook her lightly. "Scully, wake up..."  
  
"Wha- huh?" Scully mumbled in confusion.  
  
"Scully, it's already past 11:00am." said Mulder  
  
"What?" she sat up.  
  
"Yeah, c'mon, get up and get dressed. We're running very late today." he told her.  
  
Scully got up and dressed herself while Mulder did the same in his room. About 15 minutes later, they left the hotel. Mulder told Scully to stop by the Santeria shop again to look up more information concerning el monstruo de Chango. When they got there, he looked for more books that spoke of that creature. Finally, he found one that mentioned the creature. He quickly opened it and began to read, when he found something interesting.  
  
"Hey Scully, take a look at this." said Mulder.  
  
She walked over to him. "What is it?"  
  
"According to this, el monstruo de Chango is an enchanted beast." said Mulder.  
  
"So you're saying that it has powers?" asked Scully.  
  
"Yeah, this book doesn't explain too much about it, but if it really is enchanted, then that could explain the disappearing evidence and curse." said Mulder.  
  
Scully remained quiet, she wasn't buying this theory at all.  
  
"Mulder, why don't we just go and question the family a bit more about the Martinez's, maybe we'll find out more...like if they have any enemies or foes." said Scully.  
  
"I'll also see if I can get anything out of them concerning el monstruo de Chango." said Mulder.  
  
Mulder and Scully left the Santeria shop and proceeded to the family's residence. The day was hot and muggy. They both squinted from the immense sunlight as they walked up to the Cortez's front door. Joseffina answered the door.  
  
"Hola...eh Senior eh Moolder...y eh..eh-"Joseffina had forgotten Scully's name.  
  
"Scully..." she said.  
  
"Ahh...si...eScoolly...beng...come in." said Joseffina smiling and motioning to come inside.  
  
"Hola, como estas?" Mulder asked in his gringo accent.  
  
"Mui bien...y tu?" she asked in response.  
  
"Bien bien, gracias..." said Mulder with a small smile.  
  
Scully began her questioning. "Mrs. Cortez...what can y-"Joseffina cut her off.  
  
"Por favor...call eh me Joseffina." she said.  
  
Scully continued. "Ok, Joesffina, what can you tell us about your sister Marta and her family?" she asked.  
  
"Marta...she was eh very nice, she no cause any problemo..." said Joseffina, trying her best to explain in what little English she knew.  
  
"From what I've heard from other members in your family...Marta , Yamil, and Luisa weren't very religious or devout to Santeria am I right?" asked Mulder.  
  
"Si si, but she eh no always like eh that. We all three...eh Marta, Gisela, y mi...we were eh...together...De la Rosa." Joseffina tried explaining.  
  
"De la Rosa means 'of the rose' so that is the group of Santeros that you represent, correct?" asked Mulder  
  
She nodded, understanding enough to confirm what he said. Just then her daughter Victoria came in through the door and greeted them. She told them she'd translate their questions to her mother so she could give them a clear answer.  
  
"Your mother was telling my partner and me that your late aunt used to be just as devout a she and your other aunt." said Mulder.  
  
"Yes, they were the daughters of my abuelo, Jose Rodriguez. He was the high priest of the Rodriguez family, which consisted of six separate families (his two brothers and three sisters) each of them had a different name for their clan. His was De la Rosa. He passed on the title to his 3 daughters, my mother and two aunts. They all honored him and became devout high priestesses. Marta was very devout, and even raised my cousins the same way. It wasn't until her husband died that she lost her faith. I mean, who could blame her? We all understood this, and accepted the fact that she wouldn't be a practicing priestess anymore." explained Victoria.  
  
"So she abandoned Santeria completely?" asked Scully.  
  
"No, she still respected our beliefs and still kept the family's Santeria statue up that was handed down to her by my abuelo." replied Victoria.  
  
"Do you think that anyone would want to kill her because she abandoned her faith?" asked Scully.  
  
"Well, I honestly don't know. I know that we didn't hold any grudge toward her and my cousins for it." said Victoria.  
  
"Senior y Senora quiero café cubano?" Joseffina offered them some of the coffee that she was brewing.  
  
"No, gracias." said Scully.  
  
"Yes please, muchos gracias." said Mulder accepting the tiny cup.  
  
Mulder turned to face Victoria again before he spoke. "Ask your mother if she thinks el monstruo de Chango is responsible." said Mulder.  
  
Joseffina turned around when she heard the name. Victoria asked his question in Spanish. Then she answered nervously to her daughter.  
  
"My mother says that she believes that Chango punished them for abandoning their faith, and curse them to death. She believes that Chango himself sent down the beast to kill them." said Victoria.  
  
Scully spoke up to try and change the subject. "Do you know of anyone who disliked your aunt or your cousins?" she asked.  
  
"No, not really. Yanina didn't always get along with Luisa, but she wouldn't have anything to do with this. I mean, she was saddened by the whole thing just as much as we were." said Victoria.  
  
"Do you know if Yanina is at home right now?" asked Scully.  
  
"Well I think so. Both cars were outside when I got here." said Victoria.  
  
"Thanks." Scully got up from her chair and went towards the front door. "We'll come back later if something else comes up." said Scully motioning for Mulder to follow.  
  
He was very surprised by her sudden initiative. He got up and excused himself, and met Scully outside.  
  
"Scully, what are you doing?" asked Mulder.  
  
"I'm taking the lead, that's what I'm doing. According to members of the family, Yanina wasn't too fond of the Martinez's. You even told me that Yanina joined the ceremony late last night, after they had already brought you there." said Scully.  
  
"Yeah, and so did Victoria." said Mulder.  
  
"Then we should investigate her too." said Scully.  
  
"Fine, but we don't have enough substantial evidence that proves either of their guilt." said Mulder.  
  
"True, but we don't have anything that proves them innocent either." she argued back.  
  
"Weren't YOU the one that said we shouldn't jump to conclusions until we knew more?" said Mulder, implying her hypocrisy with his question.  
  
"I'm not jumping to conclusions Mulder. I'm just saying that we should find out more about them, especially Yanina Perez. She is very suspicious." said Scully.  
  
"Alright, fine, I'll go over and question Yanina while you stay here and question Victoria." Mulder suggested.  
  
"Fine by me, I'll call you when I'm finished." said Scully as she turned around approaching the Cortez's front door once more.  
  
Mulder walked over to the Perez's house. Juan Carlos answered.  
  
"Oh, it's you again. What brings you back here Mr. Mulder? He asked.  
  
"Actually, I'm here to speak to you and your sister about your relationship to your cousins." said Mulder.  
  
"Sure, come in." he still speaking in a friendly tone.  
  
Mulder sat down at the dinner table while Juan Carlos called out for his sister. Juan Carlos sat directly across from him.  
  
"So what do you want to know about our cousins again?" Juan Carlos asked.  
  
"I'd like to know how close you were to Luisa and Yamil." said Mulder.  
  
"Well, I've never had any problems with them. Especially with Yamil...him and I were like brothers. I wasn't too close to Luisa, her and I didn't talk or hang out much...only on family occasions or when I'd go over their house." said Juan Carlos.  
  
"And what about your mother and your aunts...how did they get along?" Mulder asked.  
  
"They've ALWAYS been close, they never fought about anything really. They were always on good terms with each other." he replied.  
  
"What about Yanina...how did she get along with them?" asked Mulder.  
  
"Well, I know that they had their fights sometimes or whatever, but to tell you the truth...I never let myself get involved you know. It wasn't any of my business. I know that occasionally Yamil would get mad at her for things, but they weren't usually serious." Juan Carlos explained to him.  
  
As Juan Carlos spoke, Yanina entered the dinning room and took a seat next to her brother. Juan Carlos looked at his watch.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry, but I have to get going now. I'm scheduled to work in 20 minutes, but if you need to know anything you can come back later and speak to me." Juan Carlos offered.  
  
"That'll be fine, thanks." said Mulder  
  
Juan Carlos said bye as he walked out the front door, and Yanina took his seat.  
  
"So what brings you here, agent Mulder was it?" asked Yanina.  
  
"Yes, I'd like to know about your relationship to your cousins." said Mulder.  
  
"Oh, well, there's not much really." she said.  
  
"I've heard that you and Luisa didn't get along very well." said Mulder.  
  
She paused for a moment. "We had our differences. It wasn't always like that though. We used to be really close." said Yanina.  
  
"What happened?" He asked.  
  
"Well, we used to always hang out when we were teenagers, through high school and stuff. She was a couple years younger than me. She hung around my friends and me. It was all good...until she starting disrespecting me."  
  
"How so?" asked Mulder.  
  
"Well, she was never really serious about Santeria, and I've always been serious about it. Whatever, we didn't get along anymore. She started hanging around a bad crowd of people, and was really immature." she said.  
  
"What about Yamil, any problems with him?" he asked her.  
  
"Whatever, I never talked to him much to begin with. He always hung around my brother though. Yamil was always very nosy and boy did he have a mouth on him, he would gossip more than a group of high school girls." Yanina told him.  
  
"What do you think happened to them?" asked Mulder.  
  
"I'm very religious, and I believe that the gods grew angry, and Chango especially...so he sent down a curse on them." she explained.  
  
"Oh I see...would this involve el monstruo de Chango?" Mulder asked her.  
  
"I'm not sure, but I believe that might be what happened. If that's what it is, then I'd be careful if I were you. You wouldn't want Chango to experiece the wrath of Chango. I know I don't, so if you don't mind, I'd like to stay out of this." said Yanina.  
  
"Look, I know that you're religious and don't want to go against the gods, but if you help out, then maybe we can find out what really happened and this can be laid to rest...regardless of what the truth is." encouraged Mulder.  
  
She smiled at him before standing up. "You know, my mother and aunt were right about you."  
  
Mulder got up from his chair. "Really, how so?"  
  
"They said you were very deep and spiritual...a seeker of the truth...they sensed greatness in you...we all did..." She moved in closer to him and spoke softer. "I still do."  
  
Mulder started to feel uncomfortable when his phone rang. He answered the call quickly.  
  
"Yeah?" he said, knowing who it was.  
  
"I'm finished talking to Victoria. Are you done yet?" asked Scully  
  
"Yeah, I'm just finishing up here. I'll meet you right out front." he said. Scully agreed and they both hung up.  
  
"That was my partner. We'll come back later." said Mulder as he walked out the door.  
  
Scully was already walking towards Mulder when Yanina ran up to him.  
  
"Agent Mulder..." she said as he turned around to acknowledge her. "I meant what I said..." she planted a soft kiss on his cheek then smiled at him before turning around to go back inside her house.  
  
Scully finally made her way to Mulder.  
  
"What was that all about?" said Scully, raising an eyebrow.  
  
Mulder was still a bit shocked by Yanina's actions. "I...I don't know?"  
  
"Anyway, I found some things out about Victoria. We'll talk about it over lunch." said Scully heading towards the car.  
  
"Yeah, I'm starving...and I want some more of that coffee." said Mulder accompanying her.  
  
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(Things are just starting to unfold, the next chapter will prove this . Please keep reviewing! I really appreciate it. I'll write more soon! =oD)  
  
" 


	7. new suspicions and an old friend

Disclaimer: I don't own the x-files or any of it's characters...but with all that money, do ya think I could build my OWN hotel on South Beach?...man wouldn't that be sweet!...lol  
  
author's note: worry not, my wonderful reviewers, for I too am a shipper (just not a fluffy one) ! Just be patient and you'll see what I mean. .  
  
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2:15pm  
  
Mulder and Scully settled for a Cuban cafeteria that was close to their hotel. They had already ordered their food, and Mulder was sipping some Cuban coffee that he had ordered while Scully began to speak.  
  
"I spoke with Victoria about her relationship to her cousins." said Scully  
  
Mulder put down his cup. "And?"  
  
"It turns out that she wasn't too fond of them after all, especially with Luisa Martinez." Scully sipped her iced tea.  
  
"Wow, it seems as if no one has anything good to say about her. So what did Victoria tell you?" said Mulder.  
  
"Well, it went something like this..." Scully began.  
  
---------------flash back of Scully questioning Victoria----------------  
  
"What can you tell me about your cousins, Victoria?" asked Scully  
  
"We all got along growing up, but it seems as if the older they got, the worse they became." said Victoria.  
  
"How so?" Scully asked.  
  
"Yamil was about my age, maybe a year or two older, and I'll be 31 this May. Luisa was almost ten years younger than me. She mostly hung around Yanina, who's 6 years younger than me." she told Scully.  
  
"Did you ever have any problems with Luisa?" Scully asked her.  
  
"I used to be fond of Luisa, she was my god daughter. We got along fine until a few months back." Victoria's eyes met the floor.  
  
"What happened?" asked Scully.  
  
"I had been dating my ex-boyfriend for over five years. His name is Roberto Suarez, and he was only a couple of years younger than me. Anyway, one night, a few months back, he was running late for our date that evening, it was our five year anniversary. I called his cell phone, but no one answered, so I decided to drive over to his place to see what was the matter. I knocked on the door of his apartment, but no one answered either, so I tried the door and it was unlocked and..." Victoria was still looking down.  
  
Scully could see the tears welling up in Victoria's eyes. "Then what happened?" she asked her.  
  
"I went over to his bedroom. The door was closed, so I opened it...and..." Victoria began to cry and looked up at her. "Do you what it's like to have your own cousin and goddaughter betray you in the cruelest of ways, Agent Scully? I loved that man, with all of my heart. I even planned on marrying him, and she knew that!"  
  
"I'm sorry, you must've been really hurt." said Scully placing a hand on her shoulder.  
  
"Hurt? Hurt is not the word for how I felt...especially when I found out that Roberto had been cheating on me with Luisa for almost two years already...I mean, how could she be so damn heartless? The whole time she acted like nothing was going on. She didn't even feel guilty about what she was doing. She just hightailed out of his apartment that night." Victoria was still crying.  
  
"Did anyone else know about this?" asked Scully.  
  
"I'm pretty sure that Yanina knew about it from the beginning. Though at the time I found out, Yanina and her hadn't been talking for a while." said Victoria getting back to normal.  
  
"Do you know why they stopped talking?" asked Scully.  
  
"I don't know. It had been a while." said Victoria.  
  
"Were you still angry with her prior to the incident?" asked Scully.  
  
"Well, of course I was! Do you think I could just get over the whole thing THAT fast? After I broke up with him, they still fooled around." said Victoria.  
  
"I see..." said Scully getting up.  
  
"I'm sorry if I wasn't of any help." Victoria apologized.  
  
"No, you were plenty of help actually, thanks." said Scully, getting out her phone to call Mulder.  
  
-------------------------------end of flashback----------------------------- -  
  
"So...Luisa wasn't so innocent after all." noted Mulder.  
  
"Did Yanina mention any of this to you?" asked Scully.  
  
"No, she didn't actually. She only told me that her and Luisa grew apart for religious and maturity differences." said Mulder.  
  
"Maybe she doesn't want us to know the darker side of her." said Scully.  
  
"Maybe..." Mulder was still fixed on his 'el monstruo de Chango' theory.  
  
Their food arrived.  
  
"I think we should do some background checks on all of the family members to see if we find anything that might shed some light on this case." suggested Scully.  
  
"Good idea." Mulder took a bite of his food. "We should check up on that after this."  
  
Scully nodded.  
  
After they finished up their food and paid the bill, they headed for the criminal records office in downtown Miami. Once they got there, Scully had an idea.  
  
"Mulder, we should check to see if any of the family members were involved with drugs. Miami is a hot spot for drug lords." said Scully.  
  
"Good idea." Mulder replied as the headed over to speak to the person in charge of that section.  
  
Several different agents in the Miami PD were assigned specifically to certain areas of crime. They met up with the person in charge of the illegal substances unit. The man's back was facing them.  
  
"Hello, sir?" Scully started.  
  
The man turned around. Though he was sitting down, he was clearly tall and was African American. He looked fairly young.  
  
"What can I do for you?" he said getting up.  
  
"I'm agent Fox Mulder with the FBI and this is my partner agent Dana Scully." Mulder introduced them both.  
  
"Mike Larry, Miami PD." he said shaking both of their hands. "Hey hey now wait a sec. Did you just say your name was Mulder...as in Spooky Mulder?" Mike Larry recognized him immediately.  
  
"I was hoping you'd remember me." said Mulder with a slight grin.  
  
"Wut up G-man? Brotha it's been a LONG time!" said Mike doing some handshake with him that he had taught Mulder many years ago.  
  
"It certainly has, Bad Boy. I didn't know you were working down here in Miami?" said Mulder.  
  
"Yeah, after my training back in DC, I came back to my home city, you know how that is. You still investigating them little green men?...no wait...my bad... them little gray men." Mike said correcting himself.  
  
Scully was very confused. "How do you two know each other again?"  
  
"I was working in the VCU, this was right before I was assigned to the X- Files. Mike here was training to be a federal agent. I was sort of his mentor I guess you could say. He knew about my side work in the paranormal." Mulder explained.  
  
"Yeah, I finally got promoted to a federal agent, but I stayed in the PD. I specialize in the more tough cases though, stuff that involves the FBI. This is my unit here." said Mike.  
  
"Do you work on your own?" asked Mulder.  
  
"No, I've had a partner for many years now, but right now he's on vacation with his family, so I'm on my own for 2 weeks." he said.  
  
"Oh I see. Anyway, I was wondering if you could help us out with something. My partner and I are investigating a series of 3 murders that took place a couple weeks ago, and we'd like to do some background checks on the family members." said Mulder.  
  
"Of course, anything for you, g-man. By the way, smart move for starting out with illegal substances, because down here, you never know what people are into, and usually a lot of the crimes committed here involves drug dealers and bad money." said Mike.  
  
"Yeah, this was my partner's idea actually. Don't know what I'd do without her." said Mulder lightly patting her on the back.  
  
"Heh, anyway, just give me the names of the family members and I'll look up to see if anything is on file." said Mike.  
  
Scully gave him the names of all of the family members, and Mike placed them through to the computer system's data bank of records. Two of the names showed up.  
  
"Ooh, here we go." said Mike pulling up one of the names. "Yamil Martinez. Boy did he get himself in deep."  
  
Mulder and Scully moved closer to the computer screen.  
  
"It says here that Yamil was involved in a major gang a few years back, I remember I had to bust all of these damn punks...what a pain in the ass. He dealt xtasy, marijuana, cocaine, and other goodies. There wasn't enough evidence to give him a jail sentence, but he was one of the ring leaders alright, cause they cover up their tracks well. It says here that he was placed under house arrest though for a long time. In fact, he was relieved of it 6 months ago." he explained.  
  
"Hmm, I see. He wasn't so innocent either, Scully." said Mulder.  
  
"Are there any more names?" asked Scully.  
  
"Yeah, there's a...Juan Carlos Perez. His record isn't so dirty. He was arrested for being in possession of marijuana." said Mike.  
  
"What about Victoria Cortez, Luisa Martinez, or Yanina Perez?" asked Scully.  
  
Mike shook his head. "Nope, I don't see nothing; at least not here anyway." said Mike. "Anything else you wanna look up?" he asked.  
  
"Nah, I think that'll do it. thanks again, Bad Boy." Mulder and Mike both did their handshake.  
  
"Anytime, G-man. Yo, hit me up next time you come down man. I'll show ya around town." Mike offered.  
  
"Sure will." said Mulder.  
  
Scully thanked Mike Larry as well before her and Mulder left.  
  
They left downtown and decided to head back over to the family's residence. Things were starting to get pretty twisted now.  
  
"Why does it seem like the more we find out about the victims, the further away we get from solving this case?" asked Mulder.  
  
"It's like I said before, there's obviously a darker side to these people then we thought." said Scully.  
  
Mulder thought for a moment. "So what's your theory now?" asked Mulder.  
  
"Well, considering the fact that Yamil was the leader of a gang and dealt lot's of drugs, I think that maybe a gang rival of sorts did this as revenge for something." said Scully.  
  
"But why wait 3 years later to take revenge? Even though they could've planned it out over that period of time, they would've certainly robbed the family...which the killer didn't. No valuables were missing from the crime scene." noted Mulder.  
  
"Then, perhaps a family member is responsible for this." said Scully.  
  
"But with what motive?" asked Mulder.  
  
"Luisa did have an affair with Victoria's former boyfriend for over 2 years, and she was very upset about it." said Scully.  
  
"Why not only kill Luisa then instead of the entire family? That still doesn't make sense." said Mulder.  
  
"Then what's YOUR theory?" Scully was getting annoyed.  
  
"Well, according to legend, el monstruo de Chango attacks those who commit horrible sins and disrespect the gods." said Mulder.  
  
"Then why not kill every criminal or person who commits a hideous sin? If you ask me, that's even more far fetched then my theory." said Scully.  
  
"No, it only attacks followers of Santeria." said Mulder.  
  
Scully raised an eyebrow at him.  
  
"Scully, the footprints I saw at the crime scene were most definitely NOT human." said Mulder.  
  
"Mulder, the killer could've planted those there to ward off people and to lose the blame. They're using these superstitions to their advantage. The killer obviously knows a lot about the religion. Look, let's just ask them more questions, I'm sure something more will turn up." said Scully.  
  
They then pulled up in front of the Perez's house. Juan Carlos answered the door.  
  
"Oh, hello again." he said. "What can I do for you?" he asked.  
  
Mulder and Scully stepped inside the house and sat down at the dinner table with Juan Carlos. Mulder spoke.  
  
"My partner and I did some research today and we found some interesting things out about Yamil and you. I find this funny, because you never mentioned any of this." said Mulder.  
  
Juan Carlos diverted his eyes from them.  
  
"How long was he in that gang dealing drugs?" asked Scully.  
  
He paused before speaking. "Six years. He got busted a few years ago, but he never got put in jail, they didn't find any evidence that he was a drug dealer. He was good at keepings things low key." said Juan Carlos.  
  
"Apparently so was his sister." said Scully.  
  
he got quiet again before speaking. "Now I swear I didn't know a thing about anything going on between Luisa and Roberto. I didn't find out until my mother told me." he replied.  
  
"What about you?" asked Mulder. "You were arrested for being in possession of marijuana."  
  
"Yamil gave it to me, and it was only a little. A tiny little bag, just to try it out." Juan Carlos was speaking nervously.  
  
"What about your sister, Yanina? Was she involved in this too?" asked Scully.  
  
She didn't notice that Yanina was watching them the entire time in the hallway. Yanina spoke.  
  
"If you have any questions concerning me, why don't you just ask me yourself, agent Scully?" Yanina spoke with an attitude in her voice. "No, I wasn't involved with any of that. I thought the whole thing was idiotic. I even lectured my brother for it."  
  
Juan Carlos looked down.  
  
"So you resented your cousins, and your aunt too...am I right? asked Scully in a cocky tone.  
  
"What exactly are you suggesting? Cause if you're suggesting what I think you are, then the answer is NO." Yanina was not a happy camper.  
  
Mulder interrupted their conversation. "That'll be all for right now, thanks. If we have any further questions we'll be back." said Mulder getting up.  
  
Scully followed him out the door.  
  
"Mulder, that girl is nothing but trouble." said Scully now a bit angry. "She's been a problem since we got here, and CLEARLY before then.".  
  
Mulder started walking to the Cortez residence.  
  
"Mulder, where are you going?" asked Scully already having started up the engine.  
  
"I'm going to speak to Joseffina and Gisela. We need more answers." said Mulder.  
  
"What more would they have to tell us?" asked Scully.  
  
"I'm not sure, but I truly believe that this Santeria legend plays a big role in this." said Mulder.  
  
"While you speak to them, I'll speak with Victoria about her cousins." said Scully as she knocked on the door.  
  
Victoria answered. "Back yet again I see." she said.  
  
"Yes, we'd like to speak to your mother and aunt." said Scully.  
  
"Not a problem." Victoria invited them inside.  
  
Scully stayed in the living room with Victoria and asked about her cousins' criminal records and what not. Mulder went towards the back of the house to speak to Joseffina and Gisela, who were preparing for a ceremony to take place later that evening. He entered a room that was painted a goldish color from what he could tell, and had statues and other symbolic things everywhere. The room was dark, filled with the aroma of incense, and the light of candles. Joseffina and Gisela saw him enter.  
  
"Senior, take eh off your shoes, por favor." said Gisela.  
  
"This is eh holy room of los santos." Joseffina explained.  
  
Mulder removed his shoes before going any further.  
  
"Permiso, I don't mean to bother you, but I have some questions for you both." said Mulder walking towards them.  
  
"Si si, sientate" said Joseffina, motioning with her hands for him to sit down with them on the floor.  
  
Mulder sat down. "I'm sorry to bring this up again, but I need to know. I found out some information about your niece and nephew. I want to know if you think that they were punished by Chango for disrespecting and displeasing the saints?" asked Mulder.  
  
They remained quiet.  
  
Mulder tried to simplify his question. "Your sister, Marta, she abandoned Santeria. Yamil was a gang leader and drug dealer, and Luisa was an adulterer...she betrayed her older cousin...Do you think that the saints sent down el monstruo de Chango as revenge?" asked Mulder, hoping they'd understand him.  
  
Joseffina understood him. "We eh try to protect them, but it no work, senior. El monstruo de Chango eh punish them for doing malo cosas...eh very bad things... y se mato." said Joseffina.  
  
"So you believe that this creature murdered your sister and her children to punish them?" asked Mulder.  
  
They both nodded.  
  
Gisela told Joseffina in Spanish to read his tarot. She agreed.  
  
"Senior, su mano, por favor." Gisela asked, pointing to his left hand to pick out the first card from the deck after she shuffled it.  
  
Mulder pulled out a card.  
  
"El Magicion...The eh Magician." said Joseffina. "You are eh very smart and do good in your work." she told him.  
  
She turned over 9 more cards and read them carefully. "Strength...your mind is eh very strong."  
  
Mulder watched in amusement.  
  
"Los santos, no have problem with you...they eh...how you say?...they like eh you very much." said Joseffina. "You look for answer to truth, y senior, you will eh find eh truth, and you will eh conquer it." said Joseffina.  
  
Mulder stayed quiet. Gisela pointed out the meanings to a few other cards.  
  
"The Lovers...and eh...Two of Cups." Joseffina started. "You love eh someone very much, and eh share eh...connection with that eh person.  
  
Mulder stiffened up for a moment.  
  
"No puedo, repressad los carinos. No necessitas." said Gisela, saying he shouldn't repress his feelings or affection, because there was no need to.  
  
Mulder spoke up to change the subject. "How do I find this creature? Or stop it from harming anyone else?" he asked.  
  
"No puedo." said Gisela, saying that he can't.  
  
"I don't eh know how it eh came here, senior. The eh only way it can eh come is if "Joseffina was cut off by Yanina opening the door.  
  
"Mami, Tia, ayuda me a consinar la comida." Yanina asked her mother and aunt to help her cook dinner.  
  
They got up and apologized for the sudden departure.  
  
"Joseffina, Gisela, it's alright. I can come back later." said Mulder.  
  
"No no, senior, queda aca a comer." said Gisela, insisting that he stay for dinner.  
  
He understood what she said. "Well, I don't want to impose."  
  
"No me importa, por favor, queda aqui." said Joseffina, saying that it bother her, and for him to please stay.  
  
Mulder nodded. "I guess I'm staying for dinner then." not that he minded at all.  
  
He put his shoes back on and left the room, and entered the living room, where Scully and Victoria were still talking, but not about anything concerning the case anymore. Juan Carlos was also now in the living room. Scully, seeing Mulder come out, got up.  
  
"No, Scully, sit back down. We're staying for dinner." said Mulder sitting down next to her.  
  
Scully was a bit surprised at the invitation. "Ok, that's fine with me."  
  
Victoria and Scully continued their conversation. Mulder didn't pay attention what they were discussing. He was too busy pondering about what Gisela and Joseffina had just finished explaining to him. He was eager to learn more. If only they hadn't been interrupted by Yanina...he could've found out more. Scully interrupted his train of thought.  
  
"Mulder, did you hear what I said?" asked Scully.  
  
"Oh, sorry. No, I was thinking about something else. What were you saying?" asked Mulder.  
  
"I asked if you thought that traffic was worse here or in DC. said Scully.  
  
He thought for a moment, and remembered how long it was taking them to get from place to place. Not to mention how horrible many of the people drive. DC was nowhere near as bad as Miami.  
  
"Here." he said quickly.  
  
"Yeah, that's what I was saying." said Scully, continuing to converse with Victoria, though she knew her partner was up to something.  
  
Mulder's thoughts fell back to his previous ones. He hadn't had his cards read in years. Of course when he last has them read for him, most of the same cards came up. Only, he had never come up as The Magician before; he came up as The Fool (someone in search of; a beginner exploring new things unknown to them.) The Magician meant that the he had mastered the very things he was looking for. That definitely encouraged him and boosted his ego...that is, until he thought about the last part of the cards that were read to him. Those had never come up either. He felt uncomfortable with that subject, so he avoided the thought. The aroma of the food about to be served aided him in doing so.  
  
The table was rather large. He assumed the entire family had eaten together often in the Cortez house hold. Victoria put on some Cuban music and Joseffina came around and served all of the men their Cuban coffee, including Mulder, followed by the women. He knew this coffee was growing on him. Too bad he wouldn't be able to have it back in DC he thought. Thus, he enjoyed the coffee while it was still available to him. Yanina passed around the plates and utensils to everyone. Then, Joseffina came out with the food. The food was even better than what they had eaten at the Cuban restaurant...which was saying a lot. The husbands told many Cuban jokes, and Victoria would translate to Mulder and Scully. They surprisingly had a good time. The once grumpy Humberto and Sergio, were now very laid back and open. Mulder and Scully were both flattered that the family felt so comfortable around them in so little time.  
  
They stayed there for about two hours. Before their departure, Joseffina sneakily hand Mulder a thin book. He looked at the title. 'El Monstruo de Chango'. She gave him a knowing look.  
  
The family said their good byes, and then Mulder and Scully left for their hotel.  
  
Scully smiled for a moment. "Well, that was nice for a change. It's not everyday that we get invited to stay for dinner by people we're investigating."  
  
"Yeah, I definitely have no complaints about that." said Mulder.  
  
The remainder of the drive back to their hotel was a very quiet one. For some unknown reason to him, Mulder felt uncomfortable. This feeling was foreign to him, well, with Scully anyway. He didn't want to admit it, but what Joseffina and Gisela told him earlier about his love life was really bothering him. He continued to shake off the feeling before arriving at the hotel. When they got out of the car he glanced at his watch.  
  
"Wow, 8:45 already?" he was surprised. "Where does the time go?" he asked.  
  
"It gets stuck in Miami's 24/7 rush hour traffic." she joked.  
  
They approached the building fast, and in less than a minute, were in the elevator.  
  
"So, did you find out anything useful from Joseffina Cortez and Gisela Perez?" asked Scully.  
  
"Well, kind of. Not what I was expecting though." he replied.  
  
"Oh, well, Victoria didn't have much to say about her cousins' criminal records. She apparently was never involved with any of that. I didn't really get that impression from her anyway. Then again, looks can be deceiving sometimes." Scully noted.  
  
"Yes, they sure can." he added, as the elevator door opened to their floor.  
  
Scully noticed the small book in his right hand.  
  
"So what did Joseffina give you?" she asked, trying to get a good look at it.  
  
"Something to help me better understand this case." he replied.  
  
They stopped in front of their rooms.  
  
"Let me see that." Scully took the book from his hand.  
  
She raised an eyebrow at him.  
  
"I'm just being open to every possibility." he said.  
  
"I think you're ONLY open to that single possibility." Scully unlocked her room and went in.  
  
He remained quiet and unlocked his room as well. Mulder took off his shirt and shoes and plopped on the bed. He was eager to read the small book. His instincts told him that only in there would he find answers to solving this case.  
  
Mulder opened the book and began to read. He didn't get very far when his thoughts drifted back to his tarot reading earlier. Why was it bothering him so much? It's not like any of that should matter to him anyway. He was Fox Mulder, the numb and apathetic seeker of the truth. Deep inside he knew that he wasn't really apathetic, but he tried his best to be. It was his way of protecting himself from everything.  
  
However, no matter how apathetic he tried to be, he couldn't get his mind off of Scully. He laid there for 15 minutes trying to recollect his thoughts and forget about what Joseffina and Gisela had read to him earlier in their tarot deck...until finally...he couldn't take it anymore.  
  
Mulder got up and opened the connecting door to Scully's room. His sudden entrance startled her while she was reading.  
  
"Scully...we need to talk."  
  
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(Oh...you ain't seen nothin' yet . I'll be updating soon! Please continue reviewing! Muchos Gracias! ) 


	8. out of character

Disclaimer: for the 8th time, NO, I don't own the X-Files or any of it's characters...-sigh-  
  
author's note: I'm going out of town to Greenville, SC on 6/27 (yes! I'm leaving this horrid city for a week!) , so I won't be able to update for a bit. However, I will do my absolute best to update as much as possible. Anyway, this chapter is for all of you shippers out there, and it's a lot of fun! Lol, enjoy! =oD  
  
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Scully laid the book she had been reading onto her lap, and looked up at Mulder from her bed.  
  
"Sure, what about?" she placed her glasses and book on the nightstand.  
  
Mulder tensed up. He tried to speak, but he found himself unable to.  
  
Scully waited for a response. "Well...?"  
  
He managed to find some words. "Umm...earlier...at the Cortez's house, Joseffina Cortez and Gisela Perez preformed a tarot reading on me. They revealed many both strange and surprising details that I found intriguing." Mulder wasn't too discrete.  
  
"Like what?" asked Scully.  
  
Mulder sat on the edge of the bed close to where she was. "Well, things about my personal life...like my personality, my ambitions, my l-"Scully interrupted.  
  
She sighed. "Mulder, listen, I know you're set on searching for answers, but there's no way that any deck of cards can reveal such information."  
  
Mulder looked down for a moment. "I understand that Scully, but they knew nothing about me. How could they have obtained such information?" argued Mulder.  
  
"Well, what exactly did they 'reveal' to you?" she gave him her famous sarcastic look.  
  
Mulder was thinking of what he should say. She continued to look at him.  
  
"Joseffina and Gisela...They knew about how I turn to the paranormal for answers and not just science or logic." he said.  
  
"That's obvious though...you've been asking them about the monstruo de Chango or whatever you call it and not focusing on any other possible explanation, so of course they'd make that assumption about you, Mulder." Scully wasn't buying it.  
  
"That may very well be true...but how do you explain them knowing about my pursuit of the truth, Scully?...and how hard I work to find it?...they knew all about that...they even knew about my-"Scully interrupted his defense.  
  
"Look, Mulder, I know all of that is true. You DO work hard and put a lot of effort into these cases of ours, but that doesn't mean that you should rely on a deck of cards to foretell your fate. That's nonsense." she said.  
  
"But Scully-"he was cut off again.  
  
"Mulder, it's all a matter of observing people's behavior. If they get a certain impression from you, then that's what they go by." She argued.  
  
Mulder was losing his patience. "Then how do you explain them knowing about my personal feelings? They started to explain all of my feelings before we were interrupted. I know that there was more to be said. I could see it in their faces. It was like they knew everything about me. They-"Scully interrupted him yet again.  
  
"Mulder, listen to me-"he cut her off.  
  
"No, YOU listen to me. Why can't you just believe what I say for once? You're always so quick to try and prove me wrong...and for what? Your own satisfaction?" Mulder was getting upset.  
  
She laughed at the last remark. "Mulder, listen to yourself...Do you really think I'd do any of that, and just for my own satisfaction?...because if that's what you think, than you're only giving me even more of a reason to not believe anything you're saying right now. In fact, it's YOU who always has to be right and has to run the investigations...You're SO quick to believe anything that goes against everything logical or realistic, that you ignore the facts. Like in this case...it's obvious that the murderer is a relative or someone who was close to Yamil Martinez...and not some mythological beast. Why don't you see that?"  
  
"Why? Because right now, the only evidence we have supports MY theory." Mulder knew the subject had digressed from what he had intended to talk about in the first place.  
  
"What evidence, Mulder? I have yet to find anything to support YOUR theory. We have nothing to go by here." Scully was getting angry.  
  
"Scully, I told you what I saw at the crime scene last night. How do you explain all of that? That definitely coincides with my theory." he said defensively,  
  
"I'm not denying that, but there's still NO evidence to prove any of that. It just looks like the killer cleaned up their mess and disposed of any possible evidence of the crime. Like I said, we have nothing to go by...and NO deck of cards could EVER be a reliable source for answers or information, so stop kidding yourself." Scully was growing weary of the argument when she stopped to think for a moment.  
  
"Is THIS what you needed to talk to me about?" she said calming down.  
  
He sighed. "Well... not really."  
  
She paused for a moment. "Then what DID you want to talk about?"  
  
"I was trying to tell you before you interrupted me at first. It was about something that Joseffina and Gisela mentioned about my emotions...but forget it...I guess it's not really important." he said.  
  
Mulder knew that wasn't true. However, their both digressed and argued conversation left somewhat of a bitter taste in his mouth. Although, this argument was a typical one. In just about every case they've ever investigated...they always debate their theories with each other. Usually neither of them would get angry with one another...that only happened in rare instances. He wasn't so much upset about her disagreeing with him. He was upset at the fact that she didn't allow him to finish explaining what he had been telling her. He no longer wished to tell her what he had intended to when he so abruptly walked into her room. Scully knew she had been venting and felt guilt slowly take over her, but she still stuck by what she said...only she wished she hadn't said it when she saw the expression on his face.  
  
"Look, Mulder...I'm sorry. It's just that this case has been getting to me, since so far it's been difficult to even begin to piece together. I really do believe that the more we find out about each victim or family member, the further away we get from solving this case. You think it'd be the opposite, but in this case I guess not." Scully's glance met with the floor.  
  
Mulder let out a long sigh. "It's alright, I understand. I was getting a BIT carried away...and what would our partnership be without these kind of arguments?"  
  
She let out a small smile. "It wouldn't be much of anything."  
  
He reached out with his left hand to turn her face toward him. "See Scully, we balance each other out." He moved closer to her. "That's why we mix together so well."  
  
Mulder smiled for a moment before tenderly kissing her on her right cheek. "Good night, Scully."  
  
She felt a bit flushed by the gesture and felt a tiny smile creep over her. "Good night, Mulder."  
  
He stood up and proceeded to his room. It may not have gone the way he had planed for it to, but it ended on a good note at least. There wasn't much to be said. He not only felt this, he knew this to be fact. They communicated through their own means of physical and emotional chemistry. There were times, however, where he wished he could just tell her up front. Of course, there was always that feeling of doubt, though usually it was more of a pride issue. In any case, the moment had been ruined.  
  
Scully slouched down until she was lying on her back, and tucked her arms underneath her pillow. She knew that Mulder had gone in there to discuss something important with her. She could tell by his facial expression. He had on his "serious" face. It couldn't have been just about the case. Now she really did regret interrupting him so rudely this time.  
  
"Oh well..." Scully said to herself.  
  
She also had her pride issues. Though she was very open hearted, she wouldn't be the first to make a "move" of any kind. Working all of these years in the X-Files didn't help much either. She hated to admit it, but she was consumed by her job. Scully couldn't even remember the last time she had even been on a date. Her excuse for not dating was merely that she had no desire to. Well, there was some truth in that. After all, she had Mulder. However, he wouldn't know the first thing about how to please a woman if his life depended on it. It seemed as if the mere concept of dating was now foreign to him. She laughed. Sometimes she wondered what it would be like to spend time with Mulder outside of work. To take a vacation with him, nothing romantic necessarily...just to see how he was outside of work. Scully let out a long sigh before turning off the lamp on the nightstand to her right.  
  
Meanwhile, Mulder sat up in his bed, and had already shut off the light in his room and turned on the television. He flipped through the channels repeatedly until he came across Comedy Central, which was airing a South Park marathon. At least that would keep him entertained for a while. Insomnia often overtook him at times. This was one of those nights.  
  
After about a little over half and hour, a minor impulse temped him to go out driving through the night and explore the vibrant city. He resisted the idea, because he saw no motive or point in driving around aimlessly. Then, he had a craving for some Cuban coffee. He knew that if he drove around long enough, he'd find at lease one place that served it that late. Mulder changed into some faded jeans of his, a white undershirt. It wasn't much, but the weather was muggy, it was late at night, and he most definitely wasn't going clubbing on South Beach, so it really didn't matter. He sat back down on the bed, and bent down to tie laces of his sneakers. Then, he stood up, got his keys from the dresser next to his bed, and headed out the door.  
  
Mulder drove out of the parking lot amused by his slightly impulsive actions. He enjoyed doing small things at the spur of the moment. The drive was calm and quiet as he had imagined it to be, until he drove about 4 more miles and ran into traffic. This surprised him at first, then he remembered how bad the traffic had been since him and Scully had arrived. He pulled into a plaza's parking lot that contained a Latin bar.  
  
He got out of his car and walked into the bar. No one really paid much attention to him, they were either dancing to some Spanish music on small dance floor, watching television, or talking amongst themselves. Mulder sat down.  
  
"What'll it be tonight, sir?" asked the bartender. He didn't look Hispanic.  
  
"Anything with Cuban coffee...and lot's of it." Mulder was eager to have some.  
  
The man thought for a second. "Hmmm...I've got just the thing for you."  
  
Mulder watched him pour a couple of drinks into a mug.  
  
"Here ya go" the bartender slid the mug over to him.  
  
Mulder looked at it curiously. "Other than the coffee, what else is in here?"  
  
"Glad ya asked. It's a blend of the strongest Cuban coffee with the strongest Cuban rum. The caffeine kicks in way before the liquor does though. It's a very unique drink really." the man spoke of the drink with high regard.  
  
"As long as I'm alright to drive." said Mulder  
  
The man laughed. "Believe me, you'll be fine."  
  
Mulder chugged down the contents of the hug mug.  
  
"Mmm, this isn't bad at all. I'll take another one." said Mulder sliding the man more money.  
  
He pushed the money back. "Believe me, you won't need another one...just give it a little while."  
  
"Ok, if you say so." Mulder stood up to leave after about 15 minutes. "Thank you sir, have a good night."  
  
"Same to ya." said the bartender wiping down the counter.  
  
Mulder proceeded to drive back to the hotel. Traffic only seemed to like it intensified. The roads were crowded with young and old people of all types. With the car windows still up, he could hear the sound of several vehicle's subwoofers to what sounded like hip hop music. They were most younger people. He laughed when he saw how most of them were oriented with the Hip Hop culture. All having nice decked out cars with neon lights, 20" rims that spun, and the works. Many of them would start accelerating and race each other. He was fascinated with the culture of the city, even while driving in traffic. Mulder began to feel the effects of the drink. The caffeine was first.  
  
He decided to test out the rented car's stereo, and to his surprise, it was a rather nice one. The car was a fairly new one...a 2003 Saturn LS. It wasn't anything too special he knew, but at least it looked and drove nice. Mulder scanned around the radio stations until he came across what seemed like a hip hop station. The station was called Power 96. He listened to what seemed to be a Spanish reggae hip hop song. He had never heard anything like it before. He turned up the music and rolled down his windows. Though he couldn't understand what the song was saying, he did keep hearing the song say "culo", thus he only sang along with the catchy tune when it said that word. Another car to his left had the same station on. There were 3 guys in the car. The ones in the passenger seat and driver's seat looked over at him now. They nodded their heads and gave him a knowing smirk. Mulder understood their gestures. They challenged him to a race down the street they were on. He returned the gesture, and as soon as the light turned green, they took off.  
  
By now the caffeine was at its peak, and the alcohol was now beginning to take effect. Usually alcohol kicks in immediately, but like the bartender said, this was indeed a "special drink.  
  
Mulder raced the boys down the street. Both cars drove insanely. He was surprised at how fast the Saturn accelerated. Then he remembered that it was an FBI vehicle. Therefore, it was made for high speed chasing. His confidence boosted to an even bigger extreme. After about only 5 miles, signaled their defeat and drove off.  
  
"Ahhh...swEEt victory." Mulder said to himself with a smirk.  
  
He couldn't recall ever feeling so alive in his life. The feeling was great. He felt like a teenager again.  
  
1:56am  
  
The caffeine rush began to wear off after only 20 minutes, and as he drew closer to the hotel, it faded away even more so. By the time he had reached his destination, the caffeine had completely worn off. The alcohol was now in full effect. Mulder tried his best to remain sober as he went up the elevator back to his room. When he got to his room, he felt completely relaxed and comfortable. He no longer had any control of his emotions.  
  
He managed to sit down on a chair and take off his shoes and socks, followed by his shirt. Mulder noticed that he had left the television on when he had left, but even now he made no attempt to turn it off. He looked into a mirror that was directly above the sink next to the bathroom. His pupils were huge, but he took no notice. He looked around the room when he saw the door connecting to Scully's room. Mulder now had other urges.  
  
Scully was lying on her back staring up at the ceiling. She had managed to doze off a few times, but only for about five minutes. Turning to face the nightstand, she glanced at the clock. It read 2:15am. She groaned and rolled back over. How was she ever going to be able to wake up later that morning? Just then she heard a door slowly open. It was the one connecting to Mulder's room. She remained quiet because she knew he thought that she was sleeping.  
  
Mulder walked into the dark room, with only small beams of streetlights shining through the vertical blinds. Even with the dim light, he could see that she was lying on the left side of the bed. He crouched down to the floor and moved closer to where he head was rested. Mulder began to speak softly.  
  
"Scully..." he began. "There's so much traffic outside on the street. Wow, I went out for a drive and there were all of these nicely decked out cars, and...and they were playing this loud booming music like..." Mulder began to mimic the music he had heard.  
  
"And then, wow, they went SO fast, and it sounded like..." Mulder then mimicked the noises that the car he had raced made.  
  
He was sounding completely out of character. She knew this could only mean one thing. Mulder was drunk. She tried her best not to laugh.  
  
"I know it sounds stupid, but it really happened. I couldn't believe that I actually did that though, but it felt so great...racing down the street with those guys...They didn't even know what they had coming; no they didn't. I hauled some major ass and they were left in a trail of smoke." He started to laugh. "Yeah, it was great...you should've been there, Scully. Even though you probably would've been mad the entire time and criticized me for acting so stupid, I still like having you around..."  
  
Mulder's tone grew more serious now. "Have I ever told you how beautiful I think you are? Even while you're sleeping, I still find you stunning." he stroked her hair.  
  
Scully now knew, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that Mulder was totally gone.  
  
"You know, Scully, in all these years of working together, I don't think I've ever told you how beautiful you are...and not just on the outside, but inside too...and I don't mean your insides...I mean like your heart...you get met? There are so many times that I wanted to tell you...and there's a few that'd I've tried...but now I can tell you, here while you're sleeping. I love you, Scully." Mulder was all fluff now.  
  
Scully's mind didn't want to take his words seriously, because she knew he was VERY drunk, and he was indeed acting very out of character. However, her heart was so eager to believe his last words. She felt like it had skipped a beat, and wanted to sit up and respond with the same words. She didn't know how to react.  
  
Mulder leaned in closer to her face, and began to stroke the hair away from her face. She now got a bit tense, and tried her best to act as if she were sleeping. Then, he leaned in and kissed her forehead tenderly. Scully felt her face flush with heat at the gesture. She assumed he had moved away from her, but instead she felt him softly kissing the right side of her neck. The heat spread from her face to throughout her body. She was very eager to respond, but she kept her composer. He slowly mad his way up the tip of her chin, and then kissed her lips. This kiss lasted a bit longer than the others. Now she didn't care if he was drunk, she was deeply enjoying this side of him. He pulled away, and she couldn't take it anymore. Scully sat up.  
  
"Mulder..." she whispered.  
  
He suddenly fell back startled and confused. She turned on the light in response.  
  
"Mulder, are you alright." asked a now concerned Scully.  
  
He turned his head to the side, before puking on the floor. Scully quickly got up from the bed and kneeled beside him.  
  
"Go and lie down on the bed. I'm gonna clean this up." Scully helped him up to the bed, and went inside the bathroom to get some towels.  
  
She placed the towels over the mess. "Are you alright, Mulder?" she sat beside where he lay.  
  
"Ughhh..." he replied still feeling nauseous.  
  
"Ok, just stay here and rest." said Scully, moving the trash bin to the side of the bed closest to his head.  
  
He moaned again, before rolling over. She pulled the sheets over him.  
  
"Are you feeling any better?" she asked.  
  
He didn't respond. She leaned over to look at him.  
  
"Mulder?..." she saw that he had fallen fast asleep.  
  
Scully turned off the light and sighed before getting on the bed and lying next to him. She still was shocked by his recent words and action prior to vomiting. He probably wouldn't recall anything later that morning.

(That's all for now...until I get back at least...just wait until he wakes up the next morning! ;oP Please keep R&Ring while I'm gone! Tankya beri m00ch! =oD)

(P.S. Sorry that this chapter took me so long to write. I got a bad case of writer's block. .)


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